Caste-based vote-bank politics, rather than economic issues and social policy have determined India’s electoral choices. Caste is a social phenomenon of Indian society. By participating in the modern political system, caste is now exposed to divisive influences and a new form of integration resulting from a new scheme of universalist-particularist relationships. Caste has gained an influential position in India politics.

Body:

Many claimed that the 2014 results showed that voters were now driven by an agenda of broad-based and inclusive development rather than caste and religion. A new study by Abhijit Banerjee, Amory Gethin, and Thomas Piketty, published by the Economic and Political Weekly, debunks these claims and shows how identity and religious-ethnic conflicts, rather than economic issues and social policy, determine India’s electoral choices.

• Comparing data from national and state elections between 1962 and 2014 with electoral surveys and social spending data, the authors classify the support base and vote-bank for parties across the ideological spectrum.
• They find that the BJP and other right-wing parties, such as the Shiv Sena and the Shiromani Akali Dal, have drawn their support from the Brahmins and other forward castes.
• On the other hand, the Congress, centre-left and left parties have drawn their support from Muslims and lower caste Hindus.
• These patterns have remained broadly constant over the past five decades, despite a spike in lower caste support for BJP in 2014.
• The authors argue that economic policy had no impact on voters’ choice. The study finds no correlation between developmental expenditure and support for a political party.
• The only social policy issue that drives voting behaviour is reservation in government jobs and educational institutions, the authors find.
• Other religious and communal issues, such as cow slaughter, the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, and triple talaq, drive the polarization of the vote base, the authors argue.
• The formation role of caste associations are also playing as important role in influencing voting pattern. Even political parties are considering caste as a vote bank. This enabled the lower castes to be politically influential on the basis of numerical preponderance.
• In selecting candidates for elections, political parties often giving consideration to the caste composition of constituencies. Sometimes several castes are using politics in their attempt to better their conditions or to achieve their goal.
• Reservation policy is another aspect where we can see that caste system also influence Indian politics.
• Post-Mandal politics has ushered a new era in Indian politics. Identity politics, which was earlier seen only in villages, is now visible in towns and metros too.
• Caste based violence very often finds its way into politics. The traditional differences between the higher and lower castes have acquired a new vigour and have turned, at times, into a violent and fierce struggle for power in society.

Way forward:

• Supreme Court’s ruling on Sec 123(3) of Representatives of Peoples Act 1951 where it prohibits any candidate, his agent, or any person consented by such candidate or his agent, from soliciting votes, or discouraging voters against voting for a rival candidate, on grounds of religion, race, caste, community or language, by declaring such conduct as a ‘corrupt practice’ should be implemented in letter and spirit.
• Socio-Economic Development leading to removal of poverty is necessary to remove such polarizations.
• Education of the people is another way of keeping elections secular.

Conclusion:

Caste still remains one of the important considerations of voting for Indian voters, and caste-based mobilisation remains an important consideration for political parties. The three organs of our Democracy supported by the media needs to act together to fill in the loopholes in law and make electoral process more secular.